A LITTLE CHANGE WON’T HURT RIGHT?

They say the only thing certain in life is death. I’d like to add to that and say that the only certainties in life are death, change and God. All of which we have absolutely no control over. If you are anything like me, you occasionally find yourself as a resident in delulu-land thinking you have control over one, if not all the three.

With death we all tend to lean on the immortal side of life. That is until our noses get blocked, and we regret not appreciating being able to breathe.

With God, I find that most people apply themselves to certain theological attitudes of cats and dogs. This is a blog topic in and of itself but to summarize the book called “Cat & Dog Theology” by Bob Sjogren and Gerald Robinson, we all exhibit traits and attitudes of cats (“You exist to serve me”) and dogs (“I exist to serve you”) with our relationship to God. Again, I’m not going to get into that just yet, but if you want a blog dedicated to this topic let me know.

Change in life however seems to be the biggest theme in my life this year. When I tell you I am going through all the emotions all at once, its putting it lightly. They say “if your dreams don’t scare you, then they aren’t big enough’. But what happens when the change occurring is not something you dreamed of, or asked God for? Or you never fully understood the magnitude of what you were asking for in the first place? It’s weird though because as I type this, I am realizing that I did in fact ask God for what’s currently happening, however indirectly that may or may not have been.

“Life and death are found in the tongue“ – Proverbs 18v21

Regardless of whether you wanted the change or not, its dealing with it that seems to be the biggest hurdle. Unfortunately, my default setting tends to be panic first and then resolve and adapt. No wonder I am an anxious mess. I really need to change that mindset. So here I am sharing with you my current weapons of war.

1. Acceptance. Our natural instinct as human beings is to protect ourselves. Change presents the biggest unknown we can face and thus puts us in a protective mode. I find myself exhausted mentally, physically, emotionally, and even spiritually from fighting the uncertainty. Accepting what was, what is and what is to come allows us to stop fighting. Please don’t get me wrong, in this context I am not saying give up.

• Find consistency. You all know that I am a woman of faith and there is no way I can’t talk about God. Truth be told, He remains the only consistent and reliable thing in my life. HE IS NOT MAN that He should lie or change or go back on His word. Faith aside, remaining consistent in my daily routine helps me find balance. I don’t need to think about my next move or add to the countless amount of decisions I need to make on a daily basis when I have a set routine. It keeps me sane.

• Something to look forward to. It’s easy to get caught up in a downward spiral of emotion and thought and behaviours. While we cannot directly affect our emotions, we have control over our behaviour and thoughts. Planning an outing or a lunch date or even a weekend getaway allows us to find joy amidst the uncertainty. Its the ability to redirect our thoughts on things that are good and pure and positive, which direct our behaviour and ultimately changes our emotions.

• How to win over Worry by John Haggai is an absolute game changer! He has developed a biblical formula for overcoming worry, which may I add is a sin (gives a whole new meaning to “born a sinner” considering I’ve had anxiety for half my life) and the root cause to mental and physical health conditions we are currently experiencing a drastic spike given the worlds current status.

“Faith + Poise + Prayer = Peace” – J Haggai

There are so many more snippets of wisdom I have learned thus far in life, and you can bet your bottom dollar I will be writing and sharing them. I am not saying I am an expert in this field though. I don’t claim that these tools are going to be your saving grace either. What I am saying is that we all share the same living experience that is life, and if we can help each navigate something some of us may or may not have already been through then why not?